1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to avian decoys, and in particular, to an avian decoy having retractable legs.
2. Background Art
It is often desired to have a decoy spread (a plurality of duck or geese decoys arranged on a field or the like) with one or more of the decoys providing the appearance of a standing duck or goose.
It is also desired for such decoys to have realistic looking legs and feet.
It is also desired for such decoys to be compact for easy transport and storage.
A preliminary patentability search in Class 43, subclasses 2 and 3, produced the following documents, some of which may be relevant to the present invention:
Lindaman, U.S. Patent Application 2006/0053675, published Mar. 16, 2006, discloses a hunting decoy for fowl, having a support shaft that can include a ground piercing stake in a manner that allows the decoy body and head to move, or bobble, independently of one another.
McMahan, U.S. Patent Application 2004/0084577, published May 6, 2004, discloses a decoy stand that includes a base, a pivot rod extending substantially normal to the base, and a bracket to couple the pivot rod to a decoy so that the decoy can move about the pivot rod.
Lindaman, U.S. Pat. No. 6,481,147, issued Nov. 19, 2002, discloses a hunting decoy having a collapsible hollow body, and a ground engaging stake to which the body is mounted in such a way so as to have a fore-and-aft bobbing motion.
Lindaman, U.S. Pat. No. 6,216,382, issued Apr. 17, 2001, discloses an internal support for collapsible hunting decoys so that the body of the decoy will open or expand when the support is expanded or rotated a certain way.
Heiges, U.S. Pat. No. 5,279,063, issued Jan. 18, 1994, discloses a wild game decoy with a flexible, reconfigurable neck.
Tiley et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,506, issued Dec. 22, 1992, discloses a wind-sock type goose decoy.
Wright, U.S. Pat. No. 5,168,649, issued Dec. 8, 1992, discloses a turkey decoy which can be moved between a standing posture and a mating posture.
Mattson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,470,645, issued Oct. 7, 1969, discloses a decoy having a collapsible frame including padded body and neck elements, and a weighted flexible cover.
Cook, U.S. Pat. No. 1,822,763, issued Sep. 8, 1931, discloses a decoy having a collapsible body.
Nothing in the known prior art discloses or suggests the present invention.